Suggestions On Good Reasonable Trumpets

Hi, I am a junior in high school. I am trying to find out more about some reasonable priced yet good trumpets. I am trying to keep it under $1,500.00. Any suggestions? Does anyone know anything about the Yamaha Allegro?

Ok, lessee, what is it, exactly, that you are looking for? Dark tone? Bright tone? There are some questions like that you need to answer before anyone can really say for certain.

Seeing as you're in HS, I'd wager then, that you don't want a Monette. Under 1500 is gonna be kinda hard, but here are some different horns that you might check;
Bach: Strad w/ #37 Bell and #25 leadpipe, or even a good Omega
Yamaha: I don't know jack squat about Yamahas other than the Xeno is a heck of a horn. I'd get the one with the reversed leadpipe.
Kanstul: I know they make one horn for less than 1500 if Jack is still sellin' it, but you'd have to call and ask. You might shop there and see (I'm currently lusting for a ZKT 1500)
Conn: The Vintage 1. Very versatile horn, has gotten great reviews, and therefore, may be worth investigating.[/b]

Stay away from intermediate horns, a few companies make good ones but most do not.

if this is your first pro horn i would recommend something very middle of the road.

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Oh I agree about intermediate horns. Most intermediate horns would make good beginners horns. There are some exceptions -- Getzen is definitely one whose intermediate horns are very good (should not be called intermediate) and Yamaha makes very solid horns throughout the line. I would assume Kanstul does, but I have never personally played a Kanstul that wasn't a top-shelf horn.

dizforprez makes another good point that you want a "middle of the road" horn. In other words, an all-around horn rather than a specialized horn horn (extremes as diz put it). [start shameless plug of sorts] For example, if you were going to buy a ZueS, the Guarnerius is a great all around horn for under $1000 -- but the Olympus is a much bigger horn and more specialized for $1500. Until you develop a style, don't force one and save some bucks. [end plug]

All around horn often lasts a player a long time. I have sold horns to players replacing their Bach 37s after playing from HS until they were 40.

Let me say too, that for $1500 you can buy a lot of horns. If you wanted to go into the slightly used market you could find just about any horn (short of a Monette).

The ones mentioned before I would echo. Bach, Conn (V1), Yamaha and Kanstul. I course I feel I sell a pretty dog gone good Kanstul made horn in the ZeuS so I am biased in that way.

Lastly, play some horns. You have posted several times that you may be looking for a new horn (on the TH too? I can't remember). Anyway, play some horns. Lots of people own Bachs. Some love them. Same it true for Yamahas and Conns. Kanstul made horns are much easier to find today. Play some horns.

I'm going to recommend an Olds Recording......couldn't resist. They are great horns and you can pick them up on Ebay for under $1,000. I have started to become an Olds addict and have found quite a few great playing Olds on Ebay. But as the others have said, play some horns to see what fits you and the direction you are headed in as a player. Good luck!

I have a friend who just went through the new horn buying process.
I don't know if he tried a bach strad, but i would recomend trying one anyway.
He had it narrowed down to a getzen eterna 900 and a conn V1. I played both, and both were very evenly matched. It would've taken me a very long time to pick between the two. He ended up with the conn. It was a demo model, and under 1000 (he got a steal i know!). Just don't forget getzen when you're searching for a horn. They have the best valves in the business.

Stay away from intermediate horns, a few companies make good ones but most do not.

if this is your first pro horn i would recommend something very middle of the road.

Click to expand...

Oh I agree about intermediate horns. Most intermediate horns would make good beginners horns. There are some exceptions -- Getzen is definitely one whose intermediate horns are very good (should not be called intermediate) and Yamaha makes very solid horns throughout the line. I would assume Kanstul does, but I have never personally played a Kanstul that wasn't a top-shelf horn

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M&C,

Could you imagine if every 6th grade trumpet player started off with a Getzen 900!! how cool would that be?!?!

given the price of a good intermediate horn isnt that much higher than that of a student horn i would love to see more students starting on an intermediate horn.

you agree with me on recommending horns that are good middle of the road horns, but if the Zeus really is a Mt Vernon copy wouldnt that fall into the "extreme" side of things?

The Mt. Vernon Bach was the "standard" and still is. Bach strayed away from the design some in modern years.

I sold my backup horn in a planned sale. I then sent my main horn for some gold trim. Suddenly I was without a horn for about two weeks with the ZeuS horns being backordered. I played a beginner's horn. Oh my. If you think the horn doesn't matter. I see kids all the time playing rental beginner's horns that could have bought artist or even used professional horns for LESS. The slotting and intonation would be better and less frustrating. When parents ask me for advice, I always recommend buying the best horn they can within reason. Obviously you will not buy a new Strad or Monette for a sixth grader. But my goodness, if you wanted a cornet -- and a good one, you can buy them dirt cheap on eBay.

So back to the original question -- what horn to buy? Bigaggietrumpet asked what kind of sound you wanted. You may not know just yet. But if you do, it helps narrow the selection down.

You could get a G Horn with a flashy finish new for well under $1500 and have lots of money left for some mouthpieces or a gig bag, or some fun accessories.

The same is true about several other lines.

My parents helped me buy a top-of-the-line Yamaha Euphonium in my junior year. It made such a difference in my playing and confidence. I later went on to major in music and made a 5 state honor band as a senior and was directed by Col. Gabriel (what an experience).

I'm with you Diz, beginners need better horns and someone ought to crush those nasty horns coming from China and India. And aspiring player also needs a good axe.

Kevin's advice is worth looking at from a certain angle too. If you can spend $1500 and still take lessons, great. If not, buy a high quality used horn and save the rest for lessons. But if you are like I was in high school, a budding player with a mediocre horn, a good axe will make a large difference. (I was always taking lessons, BTW).